What happens if your office caught fire today? Is there a plan? I hope so.

What about if the board director quit unexpectedly? What’s the process?

How about if a staff member accidentally clicked a ransomware-laden email link and shut down your whole network? What next?

I continue to be surprised by how many leaders dismiss this scenario as something “someone else’s problem”.

Many executives are shocked to discover cybersecurity oversight has quickly become a key leadership responsibility.

Don’t just take my word for it.

Australia’s Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull MP, said last year it’s too big a task for IT departments alone: “We must convince leaders, at board level and corporate sector and government levels, that cyber is one of their essential functions,” Mr Turnbull said at the release of Australia’s first Cyber Security Strategy last April.

Cybersecurity is a hotter topic than ever. That’s because cybercrime is costing organisations dearly.

Global cybercrime damages will cost the world $6 trillion annually by 2021, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. It costs the Australian economy between $1 billion and $17 billion annually, or roughly 1 per cent of GDP. The average attack costs SMBs $276,000.

So, here’s the question leaders can no longer avoid. When it comes to cybersecurity, how does your organisation fare?

Could you withstand a targeted cyber attack or would productivity grind to a halt?